First love
by Parapo
Summary: It wasn't just a simple case of love at first at sight, rather it was love at first, at second, at third, at fourth, at fifth, and so on. USUK UNI!AU
1. Chapter 1

**"You only fall in love for the first time once."**

* * *

Alfred Jones just had his own share of a clichéd love story.

His heart won't stop from beating faster and faster as he stared at those green eyes that glowed like emeralds on the other side of the book shelf. Through the small, teeny-tiny gap between the books right after he pulled the _Grand book of Physics_ _by Ivan Braginski, _there they were staring back at him with equal shock.

The eyes then blinked once as if it had just woken up from its momentary trance. Alfred felt like he too was suddenly pulled back to reality. Realizing the situation, he smiled and leaned closer in an attempt to get hold of the view. He was about to pull some more books on the shelf to see them better but to Alfred's dismay, the person on the other side stepped back and before he could do anything, the stranger turned and was gone from his sight. Hastily retreating footsteps echoed on the marbled floors.

"_No! Wait!"_

He called out and rushed to the other side of the shelf but when he was there, he was greeted by an abandoned space.

His shoulders slumped down and he bit his lip as a hand ran through his blonde locks. He stared at where the stranger stood. With slow steps, he walked towards the same spot and the faint smell of Roses and tea embraced him. He closed his eyes for a few seconds and simply took in the scent, appreciating the wonder of this mysterious person who he was quite sure was a beauty.

Something at the back of his mind screamed for him to start chasing after the stranger before it was too late.

Something told him that he was going to lose the greatest good of his life if he just stood there without doing anything.

Without any more delay, he spun on his heels and started to dash across the shelves, all the while ignoring the irritated hushes from the old librarian behind the desk. His eyes quickly scanned the people that stared at him from the tables and chairs but none of them had the same green eyes which stared at him earlier.

He found himself out in the open space in a minute or so, surrounded by countless numbers of faces he didn't recognize.

Except of a certain man with sandy blonde hair and stunning green eyes just a few meters from where he stood. It seemed that he was talking with someone on his mobile as he just stood there in the middle of the plaza with his phone on his ear.

It was him.

As if the stranger knew that he was looking at him, those green eyes he admired lifted and met with his own blue. Even from a distance, Alfred was sure that the other blonde's lips curved into the tiniest and cutest smile he had ever seen.

But when he took a step to rush towards him, the blonde turned around and was instantly swallowed by the wave of a group of teenagers that passed by him.

_Shit._

Alfred almost jumped down the steps and professionally avoided the people that were in his way. With lots of practice every morning whenever he was late for class, it wasn't hard to get pass all those students that walked awfully slow in front of him.

From time to time he would raise his head to keep the blonde hair in track, afraid he might lose him.

But lose him he did.

When he reached the other side of the plaza, the blonde was nowhere to be seen. Sure there were hundreds of people with blonde hair but the one he was looking for had was so different in a lot of ways for Alfred. It was like, happiness radiated from the other's whole being.

He was so unfortunate to lose him. Alfred ran his hands through his hair, something he always did whenever he was frustrated. His head still turned in every direction in hopes of capturing the green eyed man in his sight.

In the end, he walked back home with a frown on his face.

The next day, Alfred was back at the university library to borrow the book he intended to get the day before. He stood before the very shelf he was at before, and stared at the title _Grand Book of Physics _with second thoughts of pulling it out. What if he saw the man again? What was he going to do if he saw a pair of green eyes staring back at him once more?

He hoped, deep in his heart he prayed that the encounter yesterday would repeat as if his life went on a rewind.

With a deep breath, his hands found the spine of the book and with much gentleness, he slowly pulled it out.

And there on the other side were a pair of eyes that stared into him as if they were surprised yet smiling.

But Alfred wasn't amused because they were a _deep brown_ color.

"_Hey there."_ The stranger's voice said. It was a girl and she leaned closer which made Alfred back up. It was obvious she was ready to flirt and Alfred would have none of that. He saw her smiling with her equally brown hair almost on her lips. _Somebody needs to buy a hair brush_ he thought.

Before she could even say anything more, Alfred smiled at her and quickly left the library.

He found himself an empty bench by the small park beside their campus. The wind whistled gently through the leaves and it left a cooling feeling in Alfred's skin. It was the perfect place to read and review for the upcoming test the next week. Though he was not the type to spend his afternoons on a park bench like an old man with his newspaper, Alfred thought that the park was the perfect place that gave him a high chance of seeing his mystery green-eyed blonde.

Many people came by at the place, especially students who liked the beauty of solidarity. He wasn't saying that the stranger was that kind of person. It was just that his serene face would look very fitting under the shades of the trees as he sat on the park benches with an open book on his lap. Alfred was always the one with the strongest imagination.

He found himself quite right though the moment he saw a blonde man with a blue sweater sit just across him.

Alfred sat still for a while; the pages of his book began to turn to another page as the wind passed by him.

He wanted to stand and sit beside the other but his legs just won't move and his eyes won't leave the person that got his attention. He bit his lips and took in the sight that warmed his soul. His imagination just came to life and he had to debate with his inner self if what he was seeing was real.

The stranger did fit the scenery. Actually, he was perfect in it. Oh if our eyes functioned like a camera, Alfred would've taken millions of shots in every angle.

The man's collar bones peeked out from his sweater as he read a small yet thick book in his hands. He held the pages near his face and once again, all Alfred could see were his lively green eyes.

Something at the back of his mind screamed for him to stand and walk towards the other.

Something told him that he should grab the second chance or else he'd never see him again.

So Alfred closed his book and stood up. Once again as if on cue, the stranger's eyes lifted from the literature he was reading and even if Alfred could not see the lower half of his face, from the way his eyes shined he knew that the blonde stranger was smiling.

It gave him such confidence that he started to take a step.

But life wasn't about getting what you want in a blink of an eye. Alfred was supposed to know that.

Right after he took the first step, a group of bikers blocked his way and he had to step back. There were an awful lot of them and he tried to steal a glance on the other side of the park just to make sure that the stranger was still there, sitting comfortably while reading his book.

To his dismay, after the bikers went pass him his green eyes were gone.

Alfred tried to kick a pebble on the ground but he ended up hurting his toes with the pebble left unbothered.

The next day came; it was the third day since he saw this beautiful stranger at the library.

His mind kept on drifting off to his own little world with the stranger in it which caused him to bump on a potted plant or trip over some rocks inside the green house.

He was in Biology class, and today they were to observe and get samples of something which he either forgot or didn't hear as he was not paying attention. The professor led the class on a corner to appreciate the wonders of something that he didn't understand once more. He followed with little interest and let his eyes wander over the blue Hydrangeas at the far left corner of the Green House.

There was another class that marvelled on the pretty flowers and all of them seemed to enjoy themselves.

The group shared smiles and soft laughter before they walked away to proceed to somewhere he didn't really care of knowing. Though as the students disappeared on his sight one by one, a single person was left out crouching and staring at the Blue flowers intently.

A person which he identified to be his green eyed, blonde haired stranger.

Yep, _his._ Apparently he had grown fond of thinking that the stranger belonged to him only. Like he was his own mystery gift, a treasure that nobody else was supposed to know.

So once again he stood there at a good distance without doing anything. Why was he frozen on the spot? Why was it always like this? He was not a coward; he knew there was nothing to be afraid of. It confused him as to why he cannot make a move instantly whenever he saw him. And every time he had mustered his strength to take a step, something would separate him from the stranger and within a minute he was gone. He never got to take the second step.

But now he was more than determined to talk to him. He felt this pull that was very similar with how the Earth kept the Moon in its company for years. He was the moon; the stranger was the ground he was standing on.

He carefully took the first step and waited for something to happen—for a group of students to eat the other blonde or his professor to call him and lead to another direction. But nothing happened and he smiled as he was able to reach his second step.

As his foot landed on the ground, he heard a distant voice that made the other blonde look up to its direction.

Alfred watched him stand up and walked away slowly. His feet stopped on their own once again and it pissed him off. Something at the back of his mind screamed that people rarely were given a 3rd chance. Something told him that it could be his last.

But he just stood still as if it was what he was supposed to do. Just about when the green-eyed man disappeared behind the tall bushes on the corner, he seemed to notice someone was staring at him and so he paused and turned his head slightly towards Alfred's direction.

It made Alfred's heart stop just like the previous days.

Especially now that the stranger, at the sight of him waved his hand (but was not smiling, Alfred took notice of that,) before he was gone.

_He waved at me._

_He just waved at me._

_Oh my god._

He felt his stomach churn with excitement and happiness that he just stood there contented. The simple wave made him think that their relationship was progressing into something higher than before.

"_Jones! Get moving!"_

He flinched at the annoyed tone of his professor and immediately turned around to follow.

When tomorrow came, he skipped along the hallways with a stronger resolve to approach the stranger. He swore over and over again that he was not going to waste even a second the moment he spotted him anywhere and anytime.

His friends were beginning to make fun of him but he just brushed them off, claiming that it was fate's decision for them to see each other without fail. So he was confident that he was going to see him that day once again.

But he was wrong, because there were no signs of a green eyed man with blonde hair the whole day.

He tried to go back at the library; he visited the park, and even walked around the Green house for an hour but there wasn't even a shadow of this guy.

On the fourth day, he walked home defeated.

But on the 5th day, it was he that Alfred saw first thing in the morning on his way to the university.

He was riding his bicycle as usual since it was the only transportation he got that would not cost him his money. As he rode through the busy streets he had this habit of stopping by his favorite game store that would still be close at that time of the morning. So he always would just be sticking his face to the glass window just to marvel and see if there were anything new.

That was when he saw his favorite blonde guy.

As Alfred leaned back, he noticed the other's reflection casually walking with a satchel bag on his shoulder. His eyes widened and when he turned around he found him walking at the other side of the street and headed towards the same direction as where to Alfred was going. In an instant, all interests he had about the video games vanished as his mind was pre-occupied to the idea of chasing the man.

And so he did as he quickly stepped on his pedals.

He almost bumped into other people as his eyes weren't on the road but on the stranger, afraid he might lose him in the crowd of rushing students, shoppers, and businessmen. Downtown was always busy especially in the mornings when everyone would be rushing the places they ought to be. His glasses would sometimes fog up because of his heavy war breaths so he would have this mini heart attack and lost his balance. He was quick to recover though and being the other man so special, it wasn't hard to keep track of his dishevelled hair.

When he saw a pedestrian up ahead, he doubled his speed as the green numbers counted down before it turned red again. People were running to get in time as the number diminished and there were only 7 seconds left.

But again, he should've known that fate wasn't going to let him cross the road. He wasn't able to make it when a kid ran across him all of a sudden which caused him to clash with a basket of banana by the fruit shop.

"_Aaaah!"_

He fell from his bike and had his bottom splat the yellow fruits. People all turned towards him and before he knew it, he was being hit in the arm by the little girl's mother. He flinched and tried to get up as he apologized. The situation didn't get any better when the store owner finally arrived at the scene.

The American tried his best to get out of the situation. It wasn't like he was trying to escape his faults. He just had something more important to deal with. He said sorry over and over again, assuring them that he would return later to pay the damages but his words fell on deaf ears. He left them like that and pedalled away as quick as he could.

When he tried to look for the blonde hair he had been tracking, it was gone but he did not lose hope. Not just yet. The other attended the same university as him so there was a huge chance that he might catch up to him or even meet him at campus gates.

A lot of students rushed in. Some were in a hurry while others couldn't care less about being late. He was one of those people.

When he spotted the blonde hair a good distance away from him, he started to work out his legs once more but then it was harder to get through people now that he was at campus. Unlike in the streets, people were at least walking by the sides and there were spaces between them. At the university, the students occupied almost all the space and he had no choice but to hop down his bike and begin squeezing his way through them.

"_Excuse me!"_

"_Let me through!"_

"_Please move!"_

Alfred was thankful for being given a fair height. He was able to keep the stranger in sight though it wasn't really helping his mood since the distance between them was beginning to grow farther and farther. He began to shout and call his attention with _Hey you! Hey! Look here!_ And he even tried to wave his arms but the other wouldn't even turn his head.

In the end, Alfred lost him. His legs began to feel the stress they went through all that pedalling and his knees immediately gave out.

He crouched in the middle of that big space, defeated.

The 6th day came and Alfred was beginning to think about giving up. His friends were worried as hell with the way he kept on obsessing on the green-eyed man. Sometimes he even skipped lunch which was very weird and uncharacteristic of him. Lunch time was supposed to be sacred and never to be disregarded. But there he was, taking every free time he had just to go to the possible places he might meet the man.

But something inside him screamed _NO, _giving up would be the worst decision he would ever make.

Something told him that if he stopped now, he would be losing the most amazing moment of his life.

He debated on his thoughts the whole day even if he already knew that he would end up on continuing the search. So even if he had started on building his hatred for whoever Fate and Destiny was, he decided that they decide if he was going to continue or not.

_If I see him today, it's a go. It not, then I give up._

His classes ended and he was on his way home at around 8 in the evening. The day was almost going to end and still there were no signs of the green eyed man. His heart sank at the fact that he had to let the stranger go as fate decided that they were not meant for each other.

He had no idea that he was so, so wrong.

Alfred lived alone and so in late evenings like this one, he did not bother himself with cooking dinner. So he walked down the streets and headed for the closest convenience store and bought loads of microwavable pastas and popcorns. Music was blasting in his ears while he continued to embrace more and more food on his arms. There were Pringles, Doritos, and some other junk food.

When he walked towards the freezer and began to take cans of Rootbeer on his arms, that was when he saw him.

And he saw him walking away toward the glass doors of the convenience store.

_You've got to be kidding me._

Like every other person who had spotted someone they've been looking for for ages, he began to rush towards the sandy blonde, almost dropping the items in his arms.

Fate had decided that the search was still on, but fate also decided that now was not the time to finally meet him as Alfred was caught by the beeping sound by the entrance for carrying the unpaid goods past them.

His arms were immediately seized by the shop's staff and he knew that he just got in some serious trouble. He tried to wave his money at them while craning his neck outside in hopes of spotting the blonde man but he was pulled inside by the police (when did the police get here?) for questioning.

The following day he dozed off the lunch table as he spent the whole night explaining and arguing with the officers that he had no intentions of robbing the convenience store. His friends laughed at him and teased him at how stupid he was but he was too sleepy to entertain them.

It was the 7th day and a lot had happened since their very first meeting so there he was, dead tired. Yet the fire inside him was alive and his will to find the stranger was ever burning.

And that explained why he was positioned on the window of his classroom, ready to jump from the second floor with his professor and classmates panicking behind him. Only his closest friends knew he had bones of steel and he wouldn't die from what he was about to do.

He saw his beloved stranger walk by with a pile of books in his arms and Alfred figured he could help him carry those heavy readings. He also thought that the books would do him a favour of slowing the other blonde down and it would be easy to chase him.

"_Jones, get down right now!"_

"_I'll be back I promise!"_

"_I'll fail you!"_

"_I said I'll be back!" _

He gave his prof a thumbs-up along with a winning grin before he jumped down and was gone.

When he got down however, he did not catch even a glimpse of the other's shadow. It did immediately crush his hopes though s he started to hurry towards the most obvious location that the blonde would be.

The Library.

Everyone's head turned when he pushed the wooden doors a little bit stronger than intended. He was immediately silenced by the 76-year-old librarian even if he hadn't uttered a word yet. It seemed that he was well remembered by her since he almost broke everyone's eardrums when he found a dead spider inside an old book and shouted his lungs out.

This did not stop him from entering the establishment though and it was obvious that the old lady did not like him anywhere near the place with the way she crossed her arms. He greeted a soft hello and before he could even go wild and explore each corner like crazy, the neatly piled books beside the librarian took his attention as he recognized him to be the same books that his sandy blonde was carrying.

He hurriedly walked towards the desk.

"_Would you happen to know the person who borrowed those?"_

"_Of course. But I'm not telling you."_

Alfred could feel the hatred radiating from her but there was no backing up now.

"_Please? I'll leave you in peace if you tell me._"

"_Go away._"

"_Why won't you tell me?_"

"_Because I don't like you._"

"_Can't you give me even the smallest info? Like what major he's in. Please?_"

"_I'm not giving you anything young man. Now go away and leave this place in peace._"

The old lady glared at her and he glared back, even inching forward to show his determination.

And also to snatch— _borrow—_ the record notebook beside her right arm.

He bit his lip as his hand slowly crawled towards that one piece of paper that would take him another step closer to his most wanted man. It was good that the old woman was indeed _old_ for her to notice his inching hand. Within a few more seconds wasted on the staring contest, he launched swiftly forward and grabbed the record notebook with a cry of victory.

Without wasting another second, he quickly scanned through the names of the students who borrowed books as he searched for _him_.

_M. Williams – — Date Borrowed: 03/03/14 Date Returned: 03/05/2014_

_E. Herdevary – – Date Borrowed: 03/03/14 Date Returned: 03/05/ 2014_

_F. Vargas – — Date Borrowed: 03/04/14 Date Returned: 03/04/2014_

_V. Zwingli— Professor: Faculty of Engineering— Date Borrowed: 03/04/14 Date Returned: 03/07/2014_

Alfred browsed through the pages, each carefully reading the names of students and professors but after a while, the surname he had been searching for did not appear in any of the pages. He found it odd since the sandy blonde was just there a few moments ago. The books on the counter were a solid proof!

He heard a low giggle behind him and saw the old lady laughing.

"_Actually, I haven't written his name yet since he was the first to return books for this week. I haven't prepared a record sheet."_

So that explained why the recorded dates were all from last week. Why didn't he figure it out?

Alfred had to stop himself from tearing the papers apart.

"_Why'd you want to know about him?_" The old lady looked at him seriously with a raised brow. "_Cause you obviously don't know the lad._"

He looked at her, hesitating to tell her his reason because he thought she wouldn't understand anyway. Hell, she might just laugh at him for being so caught up in love at first sight!

"_It's love at first sight._" His tongue slipped before he even knew it. "_And_ _I don't care if you laugh at me. It's the truth._"

He expected laughter to follow but to his surprise, nothing came but silence and the usual sound of pages being turned. When he met the old lady's face, she was smiling at him. Not that mocking, judgemental smile she had moments ago. Rather it was something like what Alfred's grandmother wore and he felt comfortable.

"_You should work hard. Very hard. You'd look good together."_

"_Excuse me?"_ Now, that was rather confusing but he didn't complain. "_Don't you find it funny?_"

She shook her head and relaxed down her chair. "_Well it's kind of stupid but love is stupid so I'll leave it be._" The old lady giggled and leaned on the counter. "_I can see sincerity in your eyes so I'll trust you with this information,_" She summoned Alfred near him and smiled.

"_His name is Arthur Kirkland and I think he loves you too."_

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**This will be composed only of 2-3 chapters. :)**

**Hope you like it.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Bleh.  
**

* * *

The usual mornings of Arthur Kirkland's university life went only with a simple morning greeting and a few smiles. Other than that, those first, good few hours when the sun had just risen were nonetheless peaceful and quiet if you ignore the inevitable rushing footsteps and idle chatters along the way.

On one particular morning however, the university's grounds were shaken by a loud booming cheer from someone who seemed to love mornings more than anyone in the world.

"Good morning!"

The sandy blond let out a sigh as more and more people's head began turning to the right and he really was growing some interest on that certain attention-seeking lad. Arthur did not bother to turn his head and seek the person who had been enthusiastically greeting anyone that crossed his path. Actually, he was hoping he was not in the way of whoever that was in fear of having his morning completely ruined by an overjoyed bloke.

But then something told him he should let him satisfy his curiosity for a bit.

Something at the back of his mind was urging him to turn his head since a little look wouldn't really hurt.

So just like everyone else, he lifted his eyes from staring at nothing and turned his head a little, just enough for him to see what was going on. What he saw however, made him stop on his tracks with wide eyes and partially parted lips.

"Good morning buddy!"

It was that American from a week before. The one whose eyes met his numerous times since they first saw each other at the library. He had to admit that he was star struck at how beautiful the other's eyes were. For him, no words could ever describe them. In that moment, he expected for the stranger to turn away and avoid his gaze since really, he was not that kind of person someone would be eager to pay attention to unless needed. So when the man leaned in to see him better through the gap, he immediately got flustered and ran away.

It surprised him that the stranger made his way to chase him afterwards. Even if he was in the middle of a crowded space, he was immediately found and their eyes connected for the second time. At first he thought maybe he was not the person that the taller blond was looking for. But when he saw how the other's eyes lit up at the sight of him, he could not help but smile even if he tried to hide it. However, when the man began to advance, he just had to turn and use the huge number of people to his advantage to run away.

He thought that was the end of it but fate had different plans.

They met again for the second time, then the third, then the fourth, and it ended the same way. Their eyes locking and in those moments he had a hard time resisting himself from leaving. So from then on, Arthur tried his best to avoid eye contact. Every time he would see the American, he would turn away and pretend he did not see the other before those pretty blue eyes spot him once again.

But why was he avoiding the stranger? Oh the answer was simple— because he knew he just fell in love and it scared him to no end.

Because after seeing him for so many times every day, he knew it was not just a simple case of first love at first sight. Rather it was love at first sight, second sight, third sight, and so on for every second he would see the other blond. And falling in love meant gradually falling towards heart breaks.

Reality blew some sense into his brain once more and so he let his tensed shoulders relax as he sighed. But even so, he did not stop his green eyes from watching the American. Just one more minute, he thought, and then he would be on and about to mind his own business and let the little hope in his heart to fade away.

His special stranger was not going to notice him anyway.

Or so he thought.

It was happening again. As if fate had placed magnets in their eyes, no matter how crowded or how far or how impossible, green would always meet blue and before they knew it, their eyes were glued in each other.

Arthur's whole body tensed up and it went the same for the American. Still, the other's smile did not falter and instead, it grew wider upon seeing him. And then for a brief moment, he had his lips pulling up in the corners and returning it.

That must have fired up the other blond as he waved his arm frantically and began to take hopeful steps towards his direction. Well, as usual, the Brit just had to crush and ruin the American's morning by running away.

The other had not even made his way a quarter near him when Arthur abruptly turned on his heels and walked briskly towards a big group of people.

"Wait!"

It almost broke his heart when he heard the desperate-sounding call far behind him but he just could not muster the courage to indeed stop and turn around to offer the American a welcoming smile. His mind raced, his heart beat raced, and so did his legs as he walked faster than normal which later on turned into a jog until he was sure that he was out of sight.

He had hoped that it would be the last time he'd see the American. The guilt and remorse was eating him but he was so much of a fool. He would be running away and running away over and over again.

The next day, Arthur found out that him fleeing did not do any good. Apparently, the blue-eyed man got tired of waiting for fate to bring them together and so, decided to finally make a move.

And by make a move, it meant—

"Do you know Arthur Kirkland!?"

"Excuse me, do you know Arthur Kirkland?"

"Arthur Kirkland anybody?"

Even from inside he already heard his name and immediately, he hesitated to go out for some reason. He just had been free from listening to a boring lecture about numbers with letters, the last thing he needed was someone to bother him for the rest of the day.

But even so, something told him to just go and stop over thinking. Something at the back of his mind pushed that he might miss something important.

His feet stopped right after he took a step outside the door upon hearing his name. Then and there, the rest of the usual 'after class' noise drowned away in the background as panic struck him frozen on the spot.

There, only three classrooms away was the American he had been running away from. And that was what he intended to do as usual, except, it was not an option anymore the moment the other spotted him looking at his direction with a probably weird face.

It was unbelievable! Arthur never expected for something like that to happen. If he ran away now, with the number of people currently blocking the corridor, he was sure to be caught in less than five minutes.

What to do? What to do? The taller blond already had an arm waving at him, probably making sure that he had seen him among the lot. Oh he could see him alright. He wished he hadn't.

"Arthur!" Oh my god he was being approached and still he was there, rooted without any plans. The moment the bespectacled blond went pass one of the three rooms that separated them, Arthur found his common sense leaving him on his own as he abruptly turned on his heels and went back inside the classroom he wanted to escape from.

At the sight of its emptiness and lack of any hiding spot, he immediately knew that he just got himself cornered. When he turned around, deciding to just run away, it was already too late because the person he tried to outsmart was already standing below the threshold, completely blocking the only way out.

For seconds after their eyes met, nothing went past their lips except for the heavy intake of breath brought by a sudden surge of mixed emotions. Surprise, panic, nervousness, excitement. Arthur pursed his lips, still not believing the situation he mindlessly ran into.

"H-hey." It was the American who first tried to break the tension. His lips curled into an unsure smile to which Arthur responded with a simple nod. "Um, you're Arthur. Arthur Kirkland, right?"

"Yes."

As if it was some kind of magic word, it brought back the usual bright atmosphere that always enveloped the other blond. He noticed how the American's grip on his bag pack's strap tightened and he guessed that it was the other's way of trying to contain the obvious excitement and glee.

"I'm Alfred F. Jones!" He slightly flinched when the introduction came out louder than what said Alfred F. Jones intended to. The lad seemed to realise it as he let out a nervous laugh while rubbing the back of his neck with cold, sweaty palms. "Um, sorry. I didn't mean to shout. I'm really sorry."

"No. It's alright."

"Yeah. Thank you. Sorry."

Then they were standing in total awkwardness again, with Arthur suddenly finding the floor attractive enough to stare at, and Alfred discovering how amusing the zipper of his jacket was.

"Do you need something?" He asked shyly and the American lifted his gaze to meet his.

"I do! I mean, uh yes but it's not really that important and... and I, you see I just want to uh, you know." Arthur's brows furrowed, not really getting what Alfred was trying to tell him. The sunny blond took a deep breath after, trying to calm himself before looking a bit determined and speaking again. "I just wanna say 'hi.'"

"Oh." It was all that he managed to say yet deep inside him, Arthur was freaking out. What was this feeling? Was he supposed to feel happy? For goodness' sake the stranger—no, Alfred just wanted to say 'hi. A simple, two-letter word, not great enough to change the future of the world yet strangely enough to make his own little universe tumble upside down. Oh my god. He was blushing, wasn't he? He hoped he was not madly red for Alfred to notice.

"Arthur?" Alfred's voice snapped him back from his thoughts.

"Yes?"

"Hi."

He could hear his own heart beating fast as if it would jump out from his body any second from now. Alfred was smiling at him fondly and it was just so overwhelming. He bit his lips but then he really cannot help them from curling up and returning it just as endearingly though he would only send the other a few glances. God knows what might happen if he locked gazes in those pair of sky blue eyes.

"I have to go. I'll be late for my next class."

"Now? Like, right now?" He nodded. But it was a lie and he felt a little guilty about it when Alfred's smile faltered. "I can um, I can accompany you there. If you want."

Of course he did.

"No. It's fine."

"Oh. Okay."

"Okay."

He adjusted the strap of his bag on his shoulder, holding on it tightly in an attempt to contain his emotions. With his eyes still casted on the floor, he tried to make his way past Alfred whose own gaze followed him out.

"Wait!"

Arthur stopped. Thank god, he really did not want to leave yet.

"Yes?"

"See ya!"

He stared at Alfred, a little bit surprised. His face was surely flaming red right now.

The moment just blew one strong hit on him that all he could manage was one final smile. He started to walk away and with each step he took farther from that certain room, that smile got wider and wider until it reached his ears and a laugh escaped his mouth. Was it his imagination? Well, based on the faint cheers from the American that were loud enough for him to hear even at a good distance, it meant that everything that had happened was real.

At that moment, Arthur had never been so excited to meet Alfred again. Surprisingly, he wished it would be soon. But still it did not erase that small fear within him.

Fate seemed to have been listening to his silent prayers. The following afternoon, they found themselves looking into each other's eyes.

"Arthur!"

He turned around, completely forgetting the weight on his arms brought by the hardbound books he planned on borrowing.

"Al—erm, Jones?"

"Yes! Yes it's me! You remembered!"

From across the room, a loud hushing sound caught their attention. Their heads turned towards the source who was the old librarian behind a huge table filled with papers and stamps. When their eyes met, Arthur mouthed a sincere apology but she only rolled her eyes at him. Alfred was waving his arm beside him, catching the old lady's attention and at this, she shook her head though the Brit could have sworn he saw her smiling before turning back to her stamps.

"Anyway, you could just call me Alfred. You know?"

"Noted. So, what are you doing here?"

"Me? Oh! I was just um," Alfred began pointing at a random direction. "just looking around for some dictionaries and stuff."

"I see."

"This is purely coincidental. I mean, meeting you here. What a coincidence huh? Totally."

"Okay."

He could not help but hold the smile in his face before turning around to check the next section of books.

"It's true! I really didn't know you're here and it's a coincidence. It wasn't like I was following you or anything."

Arthur stopped and turned around. Their eyes meeting once again and that was when it occurred to him that they were standing much closer than the previous day. Turning around abruptly seemed to have taken Alfred a little by surprise.

"I know." He said before placing the books down temporarily on the floor. His hand pulling another one from the countless of thick leaves on the wooden shelf. Even as he leafed through the pages, he was watching his new found friend from the corner of his eyes.

Alfred was leaning on his side with the heaviness of the books supporting his weight. He was watching him closely and Arthur could feel those eyes looking at him intently, as if analyzing his every move, the rhythm of his breath, the seconds it took before he turned the page.

"Actually I... I was following you." He looked at Alfred and raised a brow. It wasn't that he did not know about it. Not that he was aware he was being followed. It was just that the way the American tried to push this as a coincidence was proof enough that he was guilty. "Sorry."

"It's fine."

Alfred was smiling sheepishly at him, taking a heavy breath in and then out. He stayed silent, waiting for what the other was going to say though the taller blond seemed to have difficulty in finding the right words. He couldn't blame him though as he was feeling exactly the same.

"So, why were you following me?" Based on the American's reaction, he immediately regretted asking. Was it even the right thing to ask? Though of course he deserved to know.

"I was," Alfred was rubbing the back of his neck. "I just wanna talk to you."

"About what?"

"Honestly, I haven't thought about that yet."

"Oh."

"Are you mad?"

At first the question kind of surprised him. But he could not blame the blond because truthfully, if it was not Alfred, maybe he would have acted differently.

Arthur put a small smile on his face reassuringly as he shook his head.

"No, I'm not."

He walked past the American with ease as he finally saw the other to return back to his normal, smiling self. Just as he expected, Alfred followed him eagerly as he went from one shelf to another while striking a pointless yet interesting conversation.

Arthur flipped through the pages of a fictional book he randomly got among the sea of fictions before him. Yet his attention remained in the real world as he grew conscious of the way Alfred stood very close to him, peeking above his shoulders without knowing how his breath slightly touched the Brit's ear. It was out of sheer curiosity, purely innocent. Even so, it was making Arthur's heart leap inside him.

Oh god, he cannot bring himself to move a muscle.

"That's like, the fifth book now." Alfred commented with worry as he eyed the previous four that rested below them. "What are they for?"

Finally, Alfred took a step back to pick up the top most book from among its family on the floor, and Arthur watched as the other turned the pages slowly, eyeing some words that caught his interest. His shoulders finally relaxed and an unnoticeable sigh escaped his lips.

"I have a paper due next week." His brows furrowed at the thought of it. "We were asked to compare them."

"All five?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

A small frown formed on Alfred's face and Arthur thought that the taller man probably felt sorry for him. Then for the first time, his fingers actually started working on turning the pages of the book he held, looking for a particular part of it.

"You're working really hard aren't ya?" The question did not exactly sound as if it demanded an answer. "Do you plan on being a writer someday?"

Well that question needed one.

He lifted his gaze from his book but he did not turn to face the American beside him. The answer was 'yes.' But he felt unnecessarily shy about it for unknown reasons. It wasn't like being a writer was a ridiculous dream. Just a seemingly impossible one but he was pretty determined about it.

Burying his nose in the book, he mumbled a 'yes' and hoped that Alfred heard him so he would not have to repeat it if ever.

"Really? That's cool. You know, I want to be a pilot someday!" Alfred's enthusiasm slowly died down with a chuckle and the sudden change in his atmosphere made Arthur look up from the pages. "But I don't think I'll ever be one."

"Why not?"

"Well—"

"What's stopping you?"

The questions slipped past Arthur's lips smoothly out of sheer curiosity and maybe a bit of concern. Alfred looked defeated, and for the past days when he had seen him pull such a face, he knew that he did not like it. It did not suit him even in the slightest.

It seemed that he had said something beyond the line. He may have hurt Alfred's feelings as he got too comfortable despite the constant ring of tension ad awkwardness that lingered in the air. He opened his mouth to apologize, but then the words immediately died down in his throat when the American's face suddenly displayed a wide smile and his eyes sparkled in a way that would put the stars to shame.

"You're right!"

The boy suddenly beamed, unconsciously leaning and taking a step forward closer to Arthur's face as he held the surprised Brit's hands unconsciously in his own. Confused with the outburst that once more threatened to destroy the peacefulness of the library, Arthur blinked fast twice in question and his neck craned back instinctively, trying to put some distance between his and the other's face.

Before he could even ask what he the other meant (and why he was holding his hands, not the he was complaining), Alfred let him go and his eyes wandered excitedly on the floor as if a fountain of great ideas was entering his mind.

When he opened his lips to speak, Alfred looked at him again with wide, excited eyes and it drowned whatever he was going to say away.

"Thank you." When the bespectacled man held his hands for the second time, the way his eyes softened as he looked at Arthur showed that it was purely intentional unlike the one before. It cut his breath short and was left to stare back, speechless and unable to move. "I need to go now. But I will be seeing you again. I promise. Cross my heart."

Arthur could only nod even if he was truthfully confused with the way Alfred was suddenly acting. Then as if the taller blond was not satisfied with his promise, he took the Brit's pinkie finger and hooked it with his.

"I promise." Alfred repeated and with one longing, hesitating look at Arthur's bewildered eyes, he took a deep breath then dashed away.

The Englishman was left alone to silently gather his thoughts as what just happened began to slowly sink in. The other relentlessly surprised him quite a number of times ever since they first met. Like how Alfred unexpectedly chased after him that day fated day. Then there was the fool jumping out from a window on his classroom which was two floors high and fortunately not getting any injuries. For the sunny blond to resort to extreme measures just to talk to him, there was not even an ounce of doubt or uncertainty that plagued his mind when the other rushed to leave. What got him thinking, however, was what could Alfred be up to this time?

He knew the extent of Alfred's efforts. He had seen them for himself and no matter how many times he would admit it, he might just not get over the guilt that was eating him. After all, his uncooperativeness was what pushed the poor bloke to do such things.

Staring at the books on the ground, his brows furrowed in irritation when they reminded him that there were so many other important things he should be thinking about. His 'prince charming' had just fled and he did not have any excuse to divert his attention from his blasted paper. Whatever Alfred was planning, he had to keep it away in a deep corner of his mind for the time being. He shouldn't be too carried away with the sudden sweet, gentle words and gestures that flowed from the man's lips and into his ears. Distraction: The best word to describe Alfred Jones. Just thinking about him for a second was more than enough for the Brit's imagination to drift somewhere far and fictional.

As much as his curiosity was killing him, he had to get moving. At that point, all he could do was hope for tomorrow to come fast and be kind to him for the sake of his sanity. Though at the back of his mind, something told him to give up his hopes of having a normal day, and something inside him whispered endless flattering possibilities that could take place.

The next morning, Arthur stood by the windowsill, dumbfounded at the sudden confession.

"Please go out with me!"

The American he had been avoiding suddenly began blaring a confession on a megaphone just outside his classroom, two stories below, and he had no idea how he was going to react.

Cold sweat trickled down the base of his neck as the whole world seemed to have turned its head to witness the attention-grabbing situation he was in. Alfred's blue eyes were ablaze with determination. Was this the reason why the blond bolted away the previous day? Arthur mentally rolled his eyes at the obvious answer that screamed inside his brain. The pounding of his heart had warned him yesterday to expect the unexpected, but his level of anticipation was apparently naive.

When nothing came out from him, Alfred lifted the phone on his mouth again.

"Arthur Kirkland, please go out with me."

He could hear the squeals his female classmates were making and the teasing from the males were as clear as day. But he paid zero attention to them as he was obviously, utterly shocked that it rendered him frozen like ice.

"I like you! Really, really, really, really, like you!"

The cheers grew louder that it was almost deafening. Almost everyone that was currently witnessing this very sweet moment was urging him to say yes. To be honest, he almost caught words of approval escaping his mouth. He just managed to stop them on time before they were successful. Did he really deserve all this attention? All the effort?

"I'm not taking no for an answer!" The American said with a determined face. "You don't have to say 'yes' now. I'm going to win you over!"

"I doubt that."

"But I'm already half way there, am I not?" He casted a knowing smile at the Englishman who knew that the answer to Alfred's question was a clear as crystal 'yes'. Arthur did not answer in fear of digging deeper into the conversation to the point where he could not recover. "I'm telling you, I'll sweep you off your feet Arthur Kirkland!"

Alfred continued to look at him expectantly, probably waiting for his go signal. Not that the American needed it. Some sort of formality wouldn't hurt anyway. As the seconds passed, he could see the eagerness in the other's smile rising. The longer he tried to hold his tongue, the stronger Alfred's resolve became. Wasn't that just admirable?

Something told him that rejecting the American would be the worst thing he would ever do.

Something inside him screamed that it was about damn time he stopped running away.

He closed his eyes for a second, and then opened them to look at the sea of facial expressions that the crowd displayed. As expected, from within the positive cheers he could hear unappreciative boos. But he cannot bring himself to care about what the people around him was thinking anymore. Besides, knowing full well of the judgemental minds of some people, Alfred stood his ground and gathered every fiber of courage in his body just to openly, proudly declare his truthful feelings. Damn it all— the shame, the criticisms, the haters, they did not matter and they should not matter.

"Will you go out on a date with me?"

Arthur met Alfred's gaze and their eyes locked. The whole world melted around them and at that very second when the Englishman parted his lips to answer, even the sound of the earth moving and the air whistling ceased as he said,

"Yes."

Then everything was lively— the sounds of applauses, encouraging whistles and cheers, the honking of cars, the chirping of birds, and more importantly, the triumphant voice of Alfred Jones as he faced the crowd that gathered around him with both his arms raised up in victory. Afterwards, the American ran and was out of his sight in a flash. Everybody's necks stretched to follow the retreating figure. When Alfred turned in a corner and was gone from his sight, Arthur immediately knew where the blond was heading.

"Hey."

The people inside his room parted into two upon the arrival of the 'star of the show.' Arthur slowly turned around. Alfred was there in the middle of them all, panting, chasing his breathes by the door before slowly walking towards him. With each step, he could feel his cheeks getting warmer and warmer, and he was sure that his face had just beaten the world's reddest tomato.

"Hi."

"Hi."

He answered back in a hushed tone, not really seeing the point of saying it out loud when his conversation partner was merely a foot away from him.

He stood there, waiting for what was going to happen next and he actually had a very good guess about what lay in their minute-away future. With a smile that was brighter than any star, Alfred hugged him and he hugged him back with all eagerness, burying his face on the taller man's chest and finally, finally getting to appreciate the sweet and tender embrace he had secretly longed for. His heart won't stop from beating faster and faster.

Arthur Kirkland just had his own share of a clichéd love story.

* * *

**I'm done with this story. Wohoo. Forgive my errors. I needed a distraction from my stressful college life. **


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